Kyle Kuzma is ready for the bright lights of the NBA Finals

When Kyle Kuzma was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2017 out of Utah, it came with the expectation that he was to be a part of the rebuild of the most famous franchise in NBA history.

That rebuild changed when LeBron James joined the team prior to the 2018 season — and the expectations of a title grew dramatically when they were joined by Anthony Davis, the premier big man in the NBA ahead of the 2019 season.

Now the Lakers, and Kuzma, are four wins in seven games away from bringing home that elusive NBA title back to the Lakers organization.

“It means a lot,” Kuzma said. “This is the greatest franchise of them all. Especially when you talk about basketball … so many Finals appearances. To be part of that, it’s history and it’s crazy. Obviously, the Lakers haven’t been to the Finals in a decade and I’m just happy that I’m here.”

The Lakers have cruised through the Western Conference, defeating Portland, Houston and Denver in five games each. And Kuzma is a big part of that success, averaging 10.5 points and 3.2 rebounds off the bench. His ability to be a secondary scorer with either James or Davis on the bench has allowed the Lakers second team to pull away from their opponents.

“The journey that I’ve taken to get to this point has been pretty crazy, and it’s just a surreal feeling to say that I’m in the NBA Finals with the opportunity to win the NBA championship,” Kuzma said. “So, man, just incredibly thankful. Obviously, when you come to the league you want to win, have success, and sometimes it never comes. You see so many guys that have never even been to the conference finals. So putting that in perspective, having an opportunity to be in the NBA Finals in my third year, it’s an honor.”

Now the Lakers will be facing the Miami Heat, the only team that might’ve had a better playoffs than them. The Heat are led by Jimmy Butler as the star, Bam Adebayo as the rising star and a horde of role players such as Goran Dragic, Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, three players who are capable if winning games by themselves.

If Los Angeles is to win the title, Kuzma is expected to be a big part of the reason why, and it’s not just because of his scoring. His extra effort on defense has been noticed and that hustle, albeit sometimes harming to the team, shows how much Kuzma wants this ring.

The Lakers and Heat begin the NBA Finals on Wednesday, with tipoff set for 7 p.m. from the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida.

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